Christmas gift
by GabyBlondie
Summary: RedXCricket one shot based on tumblr prompt:Archie helps Ruby with something and she decides to thank him with a homemade present. Will the present be a success or a disaster? WARNING: lots of fluff! Rated because I'm paranoid.


A little Red Cricket fic based on the prompt acoulpetshort gave me: Archie helps Ruby with something and to thank him she makes him a homemade gift - is the gift a sucess or a disaster?

Turns out MUCH longer than I thought, but I kind of enjoyed it… Hope you like it as well ^^

It's not set on any proper episode of the show… It could even be before Emma comes to town, that is up to your imagination!

Oh, and I'm sorry about any grammar mistakes. because English is not my first language, so I kind of struggle with it sometimes!

Now, that's enough of talking! On with the fic!

-OUAT-

Ruby is known as the town's slut, but the truth is that she has a very good heart the winter is hitting Storybrooke badly and the nuns' car is broken, so she allows them to use hers so they can do their charity and stuff. And she did it from pure goodness, so she really doesn't mind having to walk to the grocery store to buy supplies for the inn.  
But the blizzard _has _to start while she's out? Maybe it's because heavens takes no help from girls who wear short skirts and red streaks in their hair.  
So Ruby walks down the street, with several bags in her hand and even more not-at-all-Christian thoughts going on in her mind, barely paying attention at the street, when a car almost hit her and she loses her balance, dropping all the goods she's bought. Great. Because _that _is all she needs to enlighten her mood. Stupid nuns.  
"Look where you're going, will ya?", she snaps to any idiot who might be driving the car that was responsible for her falling, only to blush when she realizes it happens to be the finest gentleman in town.  
Oh, yes. Dr. Archie Hopper is a gentleman indeed. He gets off the car and comes towards her, looking so concerned that it's cute.  
"Ruby, I am so sorry! Did you get hurt?", he kneels down and touches her face, and she assumes he's trying to see if it hurts. But then why, oh _why _she feels butterflies in her stomach like a high-school girl?  
"I-I'm fine", she manages to say, and regrets when that makes him remove his hand from her cheek. But she's glad when he replaces it by offering the same hand to help her up. "Thanks", she says, and feels like kicking herself, because what kind of answer is "Thanks"?  
"I am really sorry", he repeats, and kneels down again. Ruby's too startled to realize he's getting her goods until he offers them to her. She blushes again. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Why does she act so… so… unlike herself around him?  
"Thanks". Oh, great. The 'Thanks' thing again. "So… I guess I should be on my way. Bye, Archie." She bids him goodbye and start to walk away.  
"Please, wait.", he asks, and does she _have _a choice? She turns on her heels, looking at him. "Would you mind if I walk you to your car? I'd feel better if I could make sure you're okay."  
God, he's adorable. If only she could accept his offer, but…  
"I'm not with my car right now, so I'll have to walk to Granny's. I would feel terrible if you walked me all the way there and got sick."  
"And what about you walking all the way there and getting sick?", he says, looking truly concerned. That's weird for her. A man who actually cares for her needs and not ways to get her into his bed. "Let me give you a ride, then. Please?", Archie asks, and Ruby doesn't even consider to refuse. Not only she would certainly enjoy spending time with him, but it's also _really _cold.  
And the next thing she knows is that she's in his car's passenger seat, with his jacket wrapped around her shoulders, and they're talking and laughing about how Mr. Clark is always sneezing and Leroy is all angry about everything. And, for once in her life, she doesn't feel like being away from the small town.  
Unfortunately, Granny's is too close from the grocery store, so they get there much before than what she would like. But, almost as he also would like their little casual meeting to go on, he gets out of the car, opening the door for her. What kind of man does that? Surely not any of the ones she's dated.  
"Well, here's your palace, milady", he teases while he gets her goods from her backseat, placing them in her stretched arms. "There you go. And, once again, I'm sorry, Ruby."  
"You don't need to apologize, Archie, I'm fine", she smiles to him. "And thank you for the ride." Wow, "thank you" instead of "thanks"? She's proud of her progress.  
"You're very welcome. Good night, Ruby." He says, and gets into the car again. Her knight in a white horse (well, it's actually a red Ford, but whatever) is almost gone when finally finds in her the nerve to say something else.  
"See you tomorrow at Granny's?"  
He seems startled by her question, and again she feels like kicking herself. She had no right to ask, it was clearly inappropriate… Wait! Was he smiling?  
"Sure", he says, and why in hell that makes her _so _happy? Yes, he was very gentle to her, but that's no reason for such happiness, is it?  
"Good night, then, Archie."  
And then he's gone, and she can't hold her smile for the life of her.  
She gets into the apartment she shares with Granny over the diner, and she can't help feeling that she should repay him for the whole ride thing, because, if not for him, she would never get back that fast and probably wouldn't be able to work for days. And Granny would _not _be pleased with that. And Christmas' getting closer, so it's the perfect time to give him a gift.  
But what exactly could she give to him? She's never given a gift for a man before. Well, not one she wasn't dating and couldn't give him improper ones.  
"What's that grin about, girl?", her grandmother's voice gets her out of her daydream, and she turns around to see Granny in her rocking chair, crocheting. Her grin gets even bigger.  
"Granny", she says, kneeling down before Granny, looking at her with pleading eyes. "Could you teach me to crochet?"

—OUAT—

Dr. Archie Hopper is the town's only psychiatrist, which means that, whenever people have issues, they'll come to him, either in his office or his apartment. Many people would get bothered by that, but he doesn't. He likes to help. Well, most of the times.  
He's currently at home, reading Wuthering Heights (because no shrink can resist to its character's issues) with Pongo's head on his knees, and a mug of hot coffee in his hand (not as good as Granny's, but it's just sometimes he feels like being alone. He tries to ignore that it's been happening much less often now that he and Ruby actually _talk _to each other) when someone knocks on his door. He sighs, putting the book aside and taking his dog's head off his knees, wondering what on Earth happened this time.  
He's more than startled when he's greeted by the vision of the same waitress who was on his mind just moments ago. She surely doesn't have issues, right? At least not the kind he's used to take care of. Why would she? She's beautiful, funny, smart…okay, she's hot as well. But she's much more than that.  
"Ruby, hi!", he manages to say, and she smiles at him. For some reason, that makes a smile cross his face before he can hold himself.  
"Hi, Archie.", she says, and he's so dragged into her oh-so-natural enthusiasm it takes a while for him to answer properly.  
"Please, come in.", he says, leaving space for her to come in, but this space is immediately taken by Pongo, who can't resist to greet their guest by jumping wildly, putting his feet on her white shirt. Stupid dog. "Pongo, stop! That's not nice."  
But Ruby doesn't seem offended at all. She kneels down to Pongo's level, scratching behind his ears with one hand and keeping the other one up. That's when he sees she's carrying a little box with a ribbon.  
"Hello, Pongo. You're just happy to see your old friend who always gives you some snack when your master takes you to the diner, isn't that so? I'm happy to see you too, boy."  
He wishes he could film that scene, because her smile while she plays with his dog is so… innocent, nothing like the girl all guys in Storybrooke want in their bed but doesn't want to talk to. And what a waste that is.  
"Anyway, I can't stay long, Archie", she says, getting up and bringing him back to reality. "I just came to bring you this. It's a Christmas gift, but it's also a way to thank you again for your ride last week."  
She hands the box for him, and he grabs it completely surprised. Getting gifts from his patients or Marco was one thing; but from _someone else_, and _Ruby_? He unfolded the ribbon, eager to see the box's content, but also amazed by Ruby's apprehensive expression. She was biting her lips, looking from the box to his face, bouncing like a little child.  
He opens the book, and is immediately shocked and touched. Above a little cotton pillow, two crochet Christmas tree decoration pendants lie. One looks like a dog, and the other… well, he really can't say. Their shapes are not very well-done, but that makes him value the gift even more, because he knows she's the one who did it. She actually used her free time to make something for _him_. Not for her grandmother. Not for one of her friends. Not for another man. For_him_. And he couldn't care less as how they looked.  
"Ruby…" he starts to say, but then is forced to stop, because he's not even _sure_ of how to put in words how grateful he feels. How's he supposed to say no one ever did something so nice for him before without sounding self-pitiful?  
Unfortunately, she seems to take his silence the wrong way. Ruby closes her eyes, and he can't understand, because she looks_ashamed_.  
"I know, I know, they look terrible! I swear I tried my best to make a dog and an umbrella, because of Pongo and that umbrella you always carry around, but they ended up looking more like a sheep and, well, nothing! I wasn't even going to bring it so you wouldn't have to pretend you liked it, but Granny said I should and…", she stopped to breathe, and he took his chance to interrupt her senseless speech, because she couldn't be more wrong.  
"Ruby, please stop. I was just… I was just going to say that they're wonderful."  
"But, Archie…" she begins and he is forced to interrupt her, because she sounds like she's about to cry. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he wonders why she cares so much about how he likes her gift.  
"I don't care if they're shaped exactly liked you wanted them to, Ruby, can't you see? What matters the most is that you spent your time doing this for me and… and no one has ever done something like that for me. And I just wanted to say… thank you. I loved them."  
She smiles at him again (and he wonders what he did to deserve so much pretty smiles, so he can keep doing that), seeming relieved.  
"You did?" she asks, surprised, and he can't help but chuckle at how adorable she looks. Not beautiful and especially not hot. Just adorable.  
"I did", he repeats, and she does something that he absolutely couldn't expect. She wraps her arms around his, giving him a tight hug.  
"Oh, Archie, I'm so relieved! I thought you'd hate it and would never want to talk to me again. Except to order things at Granny's, that is" she chuckles, as if she knew she sounded silly, but couldn't really help it.  
"You're kidding me?" he asks, wrapping his arms around her body, feeling the softness of her hair between his fingers. "Even if I didn't like them, I could never stop talking to you. Not now that I know how special you are."  
There, he said it. To her, to himself. He could never stay away from this girl anymore, because she's just so perfect and happy and confident of herself.  
Yeah, he thinks he might be falling in love with her. And he won't fight against it.

—OUAT—

Ruby walks down the street, and the weather is probably worse than when Archie offered her a ride. But she can't feel it. Because he liked her gift. The gift that, no matter how much time she had spent making, didn't turn out like she expected at all. She kind of hoped that it would be like Granny's crochets, all perfect and well done. But it didn't matter, because now she felt like they were the best ever.  
And that hug. What had possibly crossed her mind to make her do that? Just jump onto his neck and hold into him. And the best part was that he corresponded to it! He actually held her back and even stroked her hair.  
As if that was not enough, he also said she was special. Many guys had said that before, but none of them had _meant _it. And Archie did, she could see it in his eyes.  
She wondered why she was so happy with the fact that Archie actually said that he liked to spend time with her, because she thought he only did it to be polite. Finding out he enjoyed it as much as she did… She didn't feel that she was walking anymore, but floating. Nothing else mattered if he enjoyed her company.  
Yeah, she thinks she might be falling in love with him. And she won't fight against it.

N/A: soo, what did you guys think? Pleease, let me know, it's the first time I write RedXCricket and I want to know if it's okay! I plan to write many more fanfics to tumblr, so, if you have a prompt for me (it doesn't have to be Red Cricket. I'm ready to write pretty much anything het - I really respect who writes slash, but I suck at it), just let me know!


End file.
